Wednesday, January 6, 2010

The Visitor's Guide To Toronto

By Adriana Noton

If you are thinking about vacationing in Canada, the best place to go would be Toronto, the capital of Ontario. It is a beautiful city which, in more ways than one, is the leader of all Canadian cities. It is certain the economic leader, it has the most famous sports teams, and it has amazing scholastic endeavors and technological production. Despite all of this (and its two and a half million person population), it is still a quiet city at heart.

The reason why this city functions so well and so quietly is because it is a happy city. It is very diverse and has a liberal, understanding mindset. The crime rates are some of the lowest around, while the cleanliness rates are among the highest. It is Eco-conscious and has been listed on several different counts as the world's best city.

The city is not for everyone, though. For those who hate city living and hate long winters, this would not be a great area in which to reside. That said, though it is a city, Toronto has good access to more country areas. Being a city on two rivers, you can be a part of numerous water sports. It only houses two and a half million people, so it is not crowded in the ways New York city or Beijing are crowded.

It is home to several famous sites. The city is very diverse in its style of architecture. Where a city like Bruges is primarily focused around one central motif from one period in its history, Toronto is far more sprawled. The CN Tower, a futuristic looking building, is one of the tallest buildings in the world. The art gallery of Ontario is far more subtle in its modernity, a subtle and posh classic structure. The Distillery District is well maintained from the Victorian Era.

As with all cities, it is split up into districts. This is helpful for travelers who want to specify their tourism or who visit the city often and want to visit a new district every time. There are the different industrial areas, the port areas by the water, the fashion districts, sports districts, and residential areas.

Its parks are where Toronto can really stand out. As an environmentally friendly city, it has plenty of these. Cloud Gardens is a secretive park that is semi-enclosed and has an observatory. Few people even recognize what it is from the outside.

The culture is strong in Toronto. You would be amazed to know what a leading city it is in terms of the film industry. There are film festivals all the time, many leading actors (like Mike Meyers) hail from Toronto, it has great acting schools and a wonderful Shakespeare company. It ballet company is one of the best in the world, too.

The one thing Toronto is absolutely known for is it sports. Most people think of merely hockey, which IS its prime sport. However, Toronto also has baseball, soccer, basketball, and football teams, all very good. The Maple Leafs--the hockey team--provide a huge source of revenue for the city and make Toronto and Canada famous in sports. They are always the team to beat.

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